I usually write about trends in the office market. But right now, the trends in the fitness and broader retail market is where the news is.
There was recently an announcement that a new 60,000 square foot LifeTime Fitness location will open in the former Raymour & Flanigan space at The Source in downtown White Plains. This was the former Fortunoff, which morphed into a multi-use/multi-tenant mall after the original full-building tenant left many years ago.
Present tenants include The Cheesecake Factory, Whole Foods Market, Dick’s Sporting Goods and the office headquarters of Danone, makers of Dannon Yogurt. LifeTime will expand its footprint in Westchester with this new location just about a mile or so from its 210,000 square foot flagship on Westchester Park Drive, which is among the top LifeTime facilities in the United States.
The 275,000 square foot former Walmart in downtown White Plains is in the process of being retenanted. It has been reported that LA Fitness, Skyzone, and a Pickleball facility have signed leases that have each ranged from 20-40,000 square feet. This building has been completely empty for a number of years, and it will be good for the area to have some new uses in it that will create foot traffic. With all of the new multi-family construction in the downtown area, there will be lots of customers within walking distance.
Also, reportedly there will be a new steak house and a new Martine’s bakery in the multi-family building at 25 No. Lexington Ave., directly across from the Metro-North Station.
A new wine shop, a GolfTec facility and a Yoga studio have opened adjacent to 50 Main St. in City Square, with some other food offerings to come. So, the food desert near the Metro-North Station will have some varied new offerings.
The District Galleria project is moving along in its approval process and the former Macy’s already has some scaffolding around it, heralding the demolition of that segment of the mall in the foreseeable future. Seven residential buildings (up to 41 stories tall), with about 3,000 apartments, all underground parking, 96,000 square feet of retail primarily on Main Street and almost 6 acres of open space will replace what I always called a “huge boulder” in the middle of the CBD. It’s about a 10-12 year project, so don’t expect to see it all come up at once.
A little further south, in Eastchester, the former Lord & Taylor department store has already been retenanted with a Saks Off Fifth on the lower level, and a beautiful new White Plains Hospital Physicians outpatient care facility of about 70,000 square feet. It also includes a Burke Rehabilitation outpatient center.
This is a major new example of how the hospital systems keep pushing outpatient care out of the hospital campus and into residential neighborhoods. The local Equinox Fitness will also be relocating to fill the balance of the building with a new 50,000 square foot facility. It took a while, but it is a great example of a successful repurposing of a large retail space with retail, fitness and medical users. And a franchisee for a pickleball facility named Picklr has applied for a special use permit for a 22,000 square foot facility in half of the former BuyBuy Baby building on Central Ave. in Greenburgh.
As I have said before, experiential retail, such as all of the fitness and sports uses noted above, it a hot new trend in retail leasing. Even The Westchester Mall is on the bandwagon, with uses such as Golf Lounge 18, Lucid and Rivian EV showrooms and Play the Westchester in its mix alongside traditional retailers.
Howard Properties Represents Collado Engineering In White Plains Lease Renewal
Howard E. Greenberg, President of Howard Properties, Ltd. Has announced that his firm has represented the Collado Engineering in the renewal of its 4,860 square foot lease at 445 Hamilton Ave. in White Plains, New York.
Collado Engineering is a full-service consulting engineering firm based in White Plains, NY, specializing in mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire protection (MEP/FP) systems. Founded in 1999, the firm is renowned for delivering value-driven solutions tailored to the unique needs of each project. With a “Quality First” culture, Collado Engineering emphasizes collaboration with architects, owners, and end-users to achieve optimal outcomes. Their diverse portfolio spans educational institutions, healthcare facilities, hospitality venues, and corporate spaces, showcasing their expertise in creating efficient, sustainable, and innovative designs.
Andrew Hlushko, Principal of Collado Engineering said: “Howard Greenberg never treated this as a simple lease renewal. He told us it was important to do our homework. To look at the market. To think through what our company will need for the next 10 years. To evaluate alternative buildings against renewing in our present location. When that was all done, we felt very confident that a lease renewal at White Plains Plaza was the best thing for Collado Engineering and provided us with efficient, cost-effective office space in a quality building in a transit-friendly location in White Plains”
445 Hamilton is part of White Plains Plaza, a 2-building, 808,000 square foot office complex in the White Plains Central Business District. It features amenities including a full-service cafeteria, building security, on-site structured parking, and a white table cloth restaurant. Ownership was represented by Tara Long of Cushman & Wakefield.